Hi all, just got back from my Grandpa Neil's funeral. He passed last week Wednesday at age 90. He has been steadily declining for years and the toll of multiple health ailments (Parkinson's primarily) finally caught up to him. He was a great man and even better grandpa and I thought I would share a couple tidbits of his life for those would find it interesting.
Early life - born 1923 in Hartford WI, the son of a dentist. Was a freshman at the University of Wisconsin when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He dropped out of school and enlisted in the United States Army Air Force. Ended up being a side gunner on a B-24 Liberator. Here is a picture of him with the crew of his plane, he is kneeling on the left.
Here is his plane, "Mistah Chick"
He was stationed just outside of London for most of the war and his crew conducted bombing raids on strategic targets in Germany. Once a crew had conducted 30 raids, they were given the option to go back home. On his 29th raid in early 1944, while bombing an oil refinery in northern Germany, his plan was shot up by anti-aircraft fire. Down to 3 engines, leaking fuel and with the hydraulics malfunctioning, the crew voted to fly across the Baltic Sea to neutral Sweden instead of attempting to return to England. They crashed landed at a small airfield in Sweden, all 11 men onboard survived with only a couple minor injuries. Here is a picture of the crashed B-24 -
He spent 6 months as a prisoner of war in Sweden. Sounds pretty terrible doesn't it? Well, in truth, it was like a 6 month vacation for him. The Swedish government did not treat them like prisoners, rather like foreign dignitaries. They had chores to do - cook, clean, laundry, chop wood, etc, but also lots of free time to play sports or go to local pubs and party. Grandpa even had a stunning blonde Swedish girlfriend during that time.
Here are a couple of wartime pics, including one in which he got to meet the Queen of England, and also a stray pic of him catching a nice northern later in life -
Near the end of the war in Europe, he was sent back to America where he went to dental school at Marquette University in Milwaukee, which is where he met my grandmother. After dental school he reenlisted in the Army and was stationed in Germany where he reached the rank of Captain. Their first child was actually born in Germany.
They moved back to Hartford where he started his dental practice and had 3 more children. He was an active dentist until 1993 and the last couple years, my grandma was his dental hygienist.
Here is a pic of gram and gramps (on right) on a cruise with gram's sister and husband. Also a pic of my 2 aunts and gramps at the WW2 honor flight at Miller Park (where the Brewers play) in the summer of 2012.
Here is a couple pictures of gramps at one of the "crew reunions" in Charleston. The smaller man was another gunner on the plane.
Here are a couple of happy pictures of gram and gramps
Here is a picture of gramps meeting one of his 6 great grandchildren -
Here is a picture of gramps while he was still living at home -
Here is a picture of myself (on left), my brother and gramps when he was at the assisted living facility where he stayed the last 2 years of his life
Even with his declining health through the years, he was always in great spirits and always had a smile for anyone who cared to visit him. He was an avid outdoorsman and loved boating. He was an amazing man who loved his family more than anything else. He got the 21 gun salute this morning and I looked around at my family and there wasn't a dry eye to be seen. While it has been a tough couple weeks for us all, a lot of great memories were shared and I know he's looking down from Heaven on all of us.
Thanks for viewing.
EDIT - Couple links with plane and crash info
http://home.comcast.net/~skyscorpions/macr5924.htm
http://warbird-central.com/2011/07/42-100146-b-24j-75-co-mistah-chick/
Early life - born 1923 in Hartford WI, the son of a dentist. Was a freshman at the University of Wisconsin when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He dropped out of school and enlisted in the United States Army Air Force. Ended up being a side gunner on a B-24 Liberator. Here is a picture of him with the crew of his plane, he is kneeling on the left.
Here is his plane, "Mistah Chick"
He was stationed just outside of London for most of the war and his crew conducted bombing raids on strategic targets in Germany. Once a crew had conducted 30 raids, they were given the option to go back home. On his 29th raid in early 1944, while bombing an oil refinery in northern Germany, his plan was shot up by anti-aircraft fire. Down to 3 engines, leaking fuel and with the hydraulics malfunctioning, the crew voted to fly across the Baltic Sea to neutral Sweden instead of attempting to return to England. They crashed landed at a small airfield in Sweden, all 11 men onboard survived with only a couple minor injuries. Here is a picture of the crashed B-24 -
He spent 6 months as a prisoner of war in Sweden. Sounds pretty terrible doesn't it? Well, in truth, it was like a 6 month vacation for him. The Swedish government did not treat them like prisoners, rather like foreign dignitaries. They had chores to do - cook, clean, laundry, chop wood, etc, but also lots of free time to play sports or go to local pubs and party. Grandpa even had a stunning blonde Swedish girlfriend during that time.
Here are a couple of wartime pics, including one in which he got to meet the Queen of England, and also a stray pic of him catching a nice northern later in life -
Near the end of the war in Europe, he was sent back to America where he went to dental school at Marquette University in Milwaukee, which is where he met my grandmother. After dental school he reenlisted in the Army and was stationed in Germany where he reached the rank of Captain. Their first child was actually born in Germany.
They moved back to Hartford where he started his dental practice and had 3 more children. He was an active dentist until 1993 and the last couple years, my grandma was his dental hygienist.
Here is a pic of gram and gramps (on right) on a cruise with gram's sister and husband. Also a pic of my 2 aunts and gramps at the WW2 honor flight at Miller Park (where the Brewers play) in the summer of 2012.
Here is a couple pictures of gramps at one of the "crew reunions" in Charleston. The smaller man was another gunner on the plane.
Here are a couple of happy pictures of gram and gramps
Here is a picture of gramps meeting one of his 6 great grandchildren -
Here is a picture of gramps while he was still living at home -
Here is a picture of myself (on left), my brother and gramps when he was at the assisted living facility where he stayed the last 2 years of his life
Even with his declining health through the years, he was always in great spirits and always had a smile for anyone who cared to visit him. He was an avid outdoorsman and loved boating. He was an amazing man who loved his family more than anything else. He got the 21 gun salute this morning and I looked around at my family and there wasn't a dry eye to be seen. While it has been a tough couple weeks for us all, a lot of great memories were shared and I know he's looking down from Heaven on all of us.
Thanks for viewing.
EDIT - Couple links with plane and crash info
http://home.comcast.net/~skyscorpions/macr5924.htm
http://warbird-central.com/2011/07/42-100146-b-24j-75-co-mistah-chick/
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